The Mask of Toro
by Nroque18
Summary: In Santo Pollo, justice wears a mask, and to find the next piece of the map to El Dorado, Matt and his crew need to find the hidden lair of Captain Blood, and that means finding El Toro, but can they end the reign of the evil Santa Rana and bring justice to Santo Pollo at last? The sixth installment of Pirate Legacy.
1. Chapter 1

**The Mask of Toro**

Chapter One

Santo Pollo was a small close-knit community with adobe brick houses and dusty streets, and the only bad thing I had to say about it was the Toads with brown uniforms and muskets patrolling the streets.

They were called the Frogerales, under the command of Santa Rana, and they were supposed to protect the people, although they looked more likely to attack the people than protect them.

We were here to ask Professor Diaz on the whereabouts of El Toro, who might've known the location of Captain Blood's lair, and with it, a piece of Marco Pollo's map to El Dorado.

"Good day, travelers. Ah, I see you bring a letter from Dr. Argleston! Very good, so what brings you to our humble village?" Professor Diaz asked as I handed him the letter from Argleston.

"We're looking for someone called El Toro. Argleston said we could find him here." I answered.

"You seek El Toro? Enemy of all oppressors, defender of the innocent, El Toro is as mysterious as he is cunning." The Mustang answered. "Whose face is behind the mask? It could be you, it could be me! None can say."

"So I cannot tell you where or how to find El Toro. But there is one who might help… Talk to Friar Cluck at the church."

I and my trusted associates nodded and we walked up the hill to the church, where an old Chicken wearing glasses, a wide-brimmed black hat, and a friar's robes was reading the Bible outside the church.

"Greetings, my children, and welcome to Santo Pollo." Friar Cluck said as we approached. I bowed slightly before saying: "Excuse me, sir, but we were told that you might help us find El Toro."

"You seek El Toro? If only you had been here yesterday!" Friar Cluck said. "Banditoads attacked Santo Pollo last night, and El Toro drove them away. But El Toro is more than a man, more than a mask – he is a legend."

"From the time of my grandfather, the humble village of Santo Pollo has had a protector. Banditoads and corrupt governors, thieves and brigands, even the dread pirate Captain Blood all have learned to fear the sword of El Toro."

"Cunning as the fox, silent as the snake, strong as the bull whose name he bears, El Toro has never been beaten, and never wavered in his mission. He moves like a shadow at midnight, strikes without warning, fights with the strength of ten men, and then vanishes like the wind."

"El Toro's greatest weapon is mystery: he could be anyone, he could be anywhere. No one knows what lies beneath El Toro's mask. How can you fight what you cannot see?"

"Sadly, Santo Pollo still needs El Toro – Santa Rana's endless taxes sap the strength of our people. The Banditoads run riots in our streets while the Frogerales do nothing!"

"I fear a storm is coming, and even El Toro will be hard-pressed to endure it. And so you see, travelers, it is no ordinary man you seek. I do not know how to find El Toro, but there is one man who can help you."

"Talk to Don Rodrigo de la Vega, whose villa overlooks Santo Pollo. He has helped El Toro many times." Friar Cluck finished as he pointed. We thanked him and soon found the villa, where we knocked on the large wooden doors.

The doors opened to reveal a Bull with brown fur and combed-black hair and dark eyes. He wore a white suit with a yellow bow and a red rose in his lapel, and he held a cane in his left.

"I welcome you to my house, travelers. Are you the newcomers I have heard talk of, the ones looking for El Toro?" Don Rodrigo asked. We nodded as we stepped inside the courtyard of the villa.

"You seek El Toro? I am flattered that some associate me with such a powerful and cunning man. I am but a humble land owner. I know little of him."

"I can contact El Toro, but I must warn you – he may not reply. El Toro has many enemies who would lure him to his doom with false cries for help."

"If you want to win El Toro's trust, help the people of Santo Pollo as he does. Go speak to Estella Castillo; she is a pillar of the village."

"I wish you luck, travelers. I will say this – times are so troubled, I think El Toro cannot be far away." We left the villa and one of the villagers directed us to Estella Castillo.

"Have you come to help us? This is a blessing indeed! The Banditoads hurt us so much; it is hard to even begin picking up the pieces." Estella Castillo said.

"The Banditoads, they struck in the night without warning! All night they rampaged, smashing things and beating any who dared fight back."

"El Toro drove most of them away, but I fear some of the villains may still be hiding in Santo Pollo. We're even afraid to set foot inside the Church! Can you go in and make sure it's safe? If it is, tell Friar Cluck."

Though our weapons had drawn some attention earlier, no one said anything, and we entered the church. The altar was untouched, but the pews were smashed and small fires were burning in some woodpiles.

"Look at this place! The Banditoads are gone, but the chapel looks like a typhoon hit it!" Ratbeard exclaimed.

"And there, cut into that banner – the huge letter 'T' – it must be the mark of El Toro." Bonnie said as she pointed to said banner, and upon closer examination, the T appeared to be made by a foil.

We went back outside, where we told Friar Cluck about the T cut into the banner. "That is the mark of El Toro – he must have dealt with those vile Banditoads!"

"We will start cleaning up the church at once, but there is so much more to put right. Could you talk to my good friend Hector? His need is dire."

Hector owned a bakery near the docks, and we walked there to find its windows broken and a Chicken wearing a flour-covered apron wailing inside.

"What's wrong?" I asked as we entered the bakery.

"Don Gutierrez's lovely daughter is to be married tomorrow, but the Banditoads have destroyed my bakery and stolen all my sugar! How can I bake the cake? How will I endure the shame of it?" Hector wailed miserably. Then he looked more closely at us.

"You can get my sugar back. Hunt down a Banditoad ship. Bring me back my sugar, and strike a blow for the people of Santo Pollo!"

We headed back to the _Aquila_, where we soon spotted a lone paddle steamer crewed by mustached Toads wearing brown sombreros and ponchos, and hooded Salamanders.

As we drew closer, I could see the Toads drawing revolvers and the Salamanders drawing daggers with my spyglass. "Swivels, fire at the paddle wheels!"

The men manning the two starboard swivel guns swerved around and fired, destroying the Banditoad steamer's starboard paddle wheel.

As we destroyed the port paddle wheel and furled the sails, Salamander stabbers and cutthroats jumped onto the railings of the _Aquila_ and climbed onto the quarter deck, while Banditoad soldiers and veterans provided cover fire from the highest deck with their revolvers.

The men immediately dropped to one knee with their muskets and fired, stunning several Salamanders. One Banditoad veteran was struck down from above, and without having to glance up, I knew Bonnie had shot him from high in the rigging.

Leaving my position at the helm, I ran towards the starboard railing and leapt off the railings, where I grabbed hold of a rope and swung, kicking a Banditoad out of my way.

As two Salamanders ran towards me, I drew the two pistols at the back of my waist and stunned them. Quickly holstering them, I drew two more pistols from my cross strap and held them up at my sides to stun two more Salamanders.

Drawing my sword, I slammed the flat of it into a Banditoad's hand, causing him to drop his revolver in pain, which was then kicked away before he was knocked unconscious.

Several Banditoads turned their attentions to me, and the men seized the opportunity to board the steamer while the pressure was off them, and several Banditoads got a boot to the face as the men kicked them while swinging from ropes.

I seized one unlucky Banditoad and held him in front of me just as the others fired, stunning him. The men formed a ragged firing line and stunned many of the Banditoads with their muskets.

More men boarded the steamer and aimed their muskets at the remaining Banditoads, who surrendered their weapons. The uninjured men searched the cargo hold to find a few sacks of sugar along with supplies and plundered treasure, while others tended to their injured crewmates.

We sailed back to Santo Pollo with the sugar, where we all carried the sacks of sugar on our shoulders to Hector's bakery. "Here is my sugar! You have saved the cake, but I fear you must save the wedding, too. Don Gutierrez needs you – can you help him as you helped me?"

"Where can we find him?" I asked. Hector pointed up the hill, and we soon found a Mustang in fine blue clothes standing near a well. "So we hear you've been having problems, sir. Is there anything we can do to help?"

"I don't know what to do! The Banditoads ruined my daughter's wedding!" Don Gutierrez said. "Our troubles have no end! Ruining my daughter's wedding was not enough – the Banditoads took her captive!"

"Will you help? The last of the Banditoads are hiding in the Cantina. Deal with them, and take back Serena, my daughter!"

We entered the cantina where the Mustang behind the counter said: "Strangers! The Banditoads are back there, in the banquet hall. Beware! Be careful with the cake!"

We nodded as we drew our weapons and walked slowly to the banquet hall doors, where as I put down the last of three fingers, we opened the doors, and it was a good thing I tripped over the threshold, because otherwise, I would've been stunned by the Banditoads' revolvers.

Drawing a reloaded pistol with my left hand, I quickly rolled out of the way behind a nearby banquet table, which I flipped onto its side for cover with the help of the others.

I quickly jumped up from behind the table and fired at a Banditoad, but all it did was knock off his hat. As the other Banditoads fired at me, I summoned a Valor's Shield to block the electrical bursts.

I dropped the shield just long enough for Bonnie and Emmett to take down three Banditoads, and then I began my attack. I slammed the flat of my blade into a Banditoad's cheek and snatched the revolver from his hand.

I threw the revolver at another Banditoad's head, knocking him out, but now a Salamander stabber was coming towards me. He tried to stab me with his knife, but I parried it and as he slid past me, I tripped him and knocked him unconscious by a blow to the head with the flat of my blade.

Emmett was the first to arrive, and the Banditoad leader saw his chance. He aimed his revolvers at Emmett, but Emmett had already pulled the triggers, and the Banditoad leader's arms dropped to his sides, and his revolvers clattered to the floor.

"Where is Serena Gutierrez?" I asked as I seized two fistfuls of the Banditoad leader's blue shirt and shook him.

"The bride is gone. Froggo Villa took her. You wish to chase him? Take the road out of town, to Banditoad trail." The Banditoad leader said. "If I was you, I would not follow. Froggo Villa, he is a bad Banditoad. It's your funeral…"

"Thank you." I said as I punched him in the face, sending him sprawling on the floor. "But we don't plan on dying."


	2. Chapter 2

**The Mask of Toro**

Chapter Two

We found a trail leading out of town to the left of the church, and we followed it to a cave, with light coming from the inside. We drew our weapons and found Banditoads and Salamanders waiting for us with their own weapons.

We leapt out of the way as the Banditoads pulled the trigger, and we returned fire with our own guns. I drew my sword and swiped at a Salamander, who leapt just of reach.

Rena threw a small weighted brass cylinder, called a striker, at a Banditoad's head, and he was knocked out cold. She spotted me having trouble with the Salamander, and she hurled another striker.

"Thank you, Rena!" I said as the Salamander fell sprawling onto the floor. Emmett fired his two pistols, stunning two Banditoads, and he reluctantly drew his sword as a Salamander approached him.

I knew Emmett was a much better shot that a swordsman, so I stretched out my left arm. "Rouse!"

A glowing blue eagle was now perched on my left arm, and it flew to help Emmett by attacking the Salamander from above.

I turned my attentions to Jack, who was holding his own against a trio of Salamanders. He threw dust from the cave floor into the face of one Salamander, and then knocked him out with the flat of his blade.

Old Scratch summoned ghosts to possess the revolvers of the Banditoads, and the Banditoads were scattered as they ran to avoid the wild electrical bursts.

Ratbeard sliced through the barrel of a revolver with his cutlass, and then spun around to knock out the surprised Banditoad with the flat of his blade.

The remaining Banditoads and Salamanders retreated deeper into the cavern, where as we tried to follow them, a metal gate suddenly dropped down from the ceiling, and the Banditoads cackled as they ran away.

Old Scratch simply waved his staff, and a skeletal hand appeared on the other side of the gate to open the gate for us.

We ran deeper into the cavern, where a Salamander dressed in black with a red hood and black bandana covering the lower part of his face stood in front of the remaining Banditoads.

"Who is this?" The Salamander, presumably Froggo Villa asked.

"Where is Serena Gutierrez?" I said as I drew my sword and pistol.

"Oh, you have come for the girl. Well my friend, you'll have to come through Froggo Villa to get her." The Salamander said as he drew his knife and held it in a reverse grip.

"YOU'RE Froggo Villa? But you're not even a frog!" Bonnie exclaimed.

"How do you know what I am? I am wearing a mask!" Froggo Villa said.

I fired my pistol, but he leapt out of the way and then ran towards me. I barely managed to block his knife in time, as he covered ground so quickly.

He changed targets and he ran after Bonnie, who was reloading her Scaramanga musket. I drew another pistol from the bandolier across my chest, and fired at his back, but he managed to leap out of the way just in time.

"Rena, keep Froggo Villa busy! We'll take care of the others!" I shouted. Rena nodded and sprinted away from the Salamander she was fighting, who made the mistake of pursuing her right into an electrical burst from my pistol.

As Rena swiped Froggo Villa with her sword, we kept the other Banditoads and Salamanders busy. The Salamanders kept jumping out of reach of my sword, but when one tried to move in for the kill, I grabbed his arm and flipped him onto his back.

I knocked him out with the flat of my blade before parrying another Salamander's knife and spinning around to knock him out as well.

As the Banditoads regrouped and prepared to fire at me, I grabbed the last Salamander and held him in front of me to intercept the electrical bursts.

Ratbeard then broke the ragged firing line the Banditoads had made, and started wreaking havoc with his cutlass. Emmett had reloaded his pistol and stunned the Salamander he was fighting while the glowing blue eagle blocked his vision.

Now outnumbered seven to one, Froggo Villa backed away slowly as we approached him with our swords and guns.

"I beg you, do not hurt me! I tell you everything! You want the girl? She is here – take her! El Guapo – he is the one you want. Not me!" Froggo Villa pleaded as he dropped his knife.

"Thank you." I said as I stunned him with my pistol. We soon found Serena Gutierrez deep inside the cavern, still in her wedding dress with a rope tied around her wrists.

"Thank you, oh thank you! You've saved me from a fate worse than death. Please take me home at once!" Serena said as she rubbed her wrists. We returned to Santo Pollo, where Serena had a happy reunion with her father.

"My Serena is returned to me, safe and sound! Oh Captain, you have my eternal thanks. The debt I owe you can never be repaid." Don Gutierrez said. "You have saved my child, but now I fear all of Santo Pollo is in mortal danger!"

"It was not enough that those accursed Banditoads terrorized Santo Pollo and abducted my daughter – they have stolen the strongbox!"

"That strongbox holds the money we've set aside for our taxes. If we cannot pay Santa Rana, I dread to think what he will do to us!"

"They took the strongbox to El Guapo, their boss. You will find him in Banditoad Gulch, through the cave at the end of Banditoad Trail."

We nodded as we ran back to the trail leading outside of town, where we soon found the Banditoads' hideout, with five adobe watchtowers with wooden roofs surrounding the main building.

"Those towers, captain my captain! We got to knock all them down before we storm the Toad hideout!" Old Scratch exclaimed as he pointed.

I looked with my spyglass to see carts of hay conveniently near the watch towers, and in my head, I formed a plan.

"Rena and I will burn down the watchtowers. Attack as soon as you see the last one fall." I said. I took the one closest to us and began scaling the tower.

Luckily, the watchtower had a lot of handholds and footholds, and I silently thanked Rena for all those times she dragged me into climbing the tallest buildings in Port Regal.

"Well, they'll notice after this." I said as I reached the top, which had gunpowder kegs. I liberally spread powder over the kegs and lit a small torch.

I tossed the torch onto kegs and then jumped down into the nearby cart of hay just as the watchtower became a giant beacon.

The Banditoads shouted as they ran to investigate the burning watchtower, and I slipped out from the cart of hay to the next tower while they were distracted.

As I neared the top of the third watchtower, the second watchtower caught on fire, and I spotted Rena running towards the fourth.

Turning my attentions back to my climbing, I was about to climb up onto the balustrade when a Banditoad caught me by surprise with his revolver, leaving me hanging by one hand.

As I regained my footing, the Banditoad peered over the balustrade, and I immediately grabbed him by the collar and threw him over the side of the watchtower.

I ignited the tower and jumped into the cart of hay below as the third watchtower burned. I ran to the fifth watchtower, a sense of urgency coming over me as I climbed the watchtower.

As the gunpowder kegs exploded, I swan dived into the cart of hay, and drawing two pistols, I ran to join the others as they charged through the Banditoads to the hideout, which was made of red brick.

As the double doors burst open, a Bull dressed in black made a dynamic entry through one of the windows. "Let the wicked take flight! El Toro is here, and he has come for justice!"

The Bull wore a black hat, domino mask, cape, shirt, pants, and boots, but he also wore a red sash around his waist. He wielded a foil in his right hand and a whip in his left, and he bore more than a coincidental resemblance to Don Rodrigo.

He leapt into the fray, and we followed close behind. El Toro's whip cracked, and a Banditoad let out a cry of pain as he dropped his revolver.

I fired my two pistols and drew my sword, and an idea suddenly occurred to me as I looked at El Toro's foil: a sword with no sharp edges, allowing him to swing it without fear of shedding blood. I then shouted: "Valor's Shield!"

My sword was now covered in blue energy, and with its edge safely covered by my Valor's Shield, I immediately began batting away at the Banditoads.

I then spotted El Guapo, a warty Toad dressed in a green coat with gold epaulettes and wielding a shotgun. He aimed his shotgun at Rena, but just as he fired, I tackled her out of the way.

I quickly rolled off of Rena before she could call me an opportunistic pervert, and I drew a pistol from my bandolier and fired back, but El Guapo jumped out of the way of my electrical burst.

I got up and ran to help the others with my sword, and I swiped at one Salamander, who jumped backwards into an electrical burst from Emmett's pistol.

Bonnie slammed the butt of her Scaramanga into a Banditoad's face, and Old Scratch had summoned some ghosts to possess the knives of the Salamanders to pin them to the walls, making easy targets for the flats of Jack and Ratbeard's blades.

We turned towards the last remaining Banditoad: El Guapo. I have to give him credit, for despite his bulk, he was fast, and he leapt out of the way of our electrical bursts.

"El Guapo escapes to fight another day! You have not seen the last of El Guapo!" El Guapo howled as he jumped out the window. Bonnie followed him to the window where she peered outside. "Blast! More slippery than a greased eel, he is!"

"We meet at last, pirates!" El Toro said. "You have done well – your attack served as the perfect diversion. I, El Toro, have been able to discover El Guapo's secret plan!"

"Don Rodrigo speaks very highly of you. He is such an honorable and handsome man, his word carries much weight with me." This all but confirmed my theory.

"Look here – the strongbox is missing, and here I find a letter from Santa Rana! That monster! His secret plan stands revealed." El Toro said as he produced a letter with a red wax seal.

"Santa Rana extorts backbreaking taxes out of the poor people of Santo Pollo, and then hires Banditoads to steal the money so he can extort more!"

"Justice must be done! You have a ship – take me to Castillo Sapo, Santa Rana's fortress, and we will put an end to his villainy once and for all!"

He followed us back to the_ Aquila_, where we sailed northwest to Castillo Sapo. We were alone as we dropped anchor at the docks.

"Stay here and guard this position. See to it that the Frogerales stay out of the fort. As for us, we're going in after him." I said to David and Richard Clutterbuck, the gunnery officers aboard the _Aquila_, with my trusted associates and El Toro behind me.

We quickly stunned the two guards posted outside the entrance of Santa Rana's fortress, and we entered the courtyard.

"We must strike quickly. We'll split up – you go to the barracks tower and sabotage their armory. I shall hunt Santa Rana in his palace." El Toro said as he drew his foil and whip.

I nodded as I drew my sword and pistol. "Let's go, everyone."


	3. Chapter 3

**The Mask of Toro**

Chapter Three

As the doors to the barracks of the Castillo Sapo burst open, the Frogerales looked up from their card game just in time to intercept the electrical bursts from our guns with their faces.

I quickly kicked over the table in the center of the room, scattering playing cards as the remaining Frogerales fired their double-barreled shotguns, intercepting their shots.

I picked up a fallen Yum bottle and threw it at the head of one of the Frogerales, knocking him out. One Frogerale aimed his shotgun at me, and I ducked down just in time to avoid being stunned.

I drew two more pistols and returned fire, but the Frogerales I was aiming for simply jumped like frogs and fired back, just barely missing me.

I drew my last pistol, and as I heard the sounds of gunfire and Frogerales shouting in pain, I broke the Frogerales' firing line and I slammed the flat of my blade into a Frogerale's head.

Covering my blade with blue energy to prevent accidental killing, I slammed my sword into the stomach of another Frogerale and fired my pistol at another.

As the Frogerales fired their shotguns again, I blocked the incoming electrical bursts with a Valor's Shield. The others then leapt right on top of the distracted Frogerales, and we made our way upstairs to the armory.

Bonnie led the way, and she peered around a corner to an open door and immediately brought her head back behind the wall. "It looks like Santa Rana's working with the Armada. Hand me one of those smoke bombs, Rena."

As Rena handed her the smoke bomb, Bonnie threw it into the room, and a few seconds later, she gave the signal to attack.

I seized the halberd of a Clockwork marine and slammed the blade into his stomach, getting behind the Clockwork marine's body just in time to block the Clockwork musketeers' shots.

Discarding the Clockwork marine's body, I drew my pistols and returned fire, and as I holstered the last pistol, I drew my sword.

Seeing as how the Clockworks weren't alive, I went all out. I decapitated one Clockwork musketeer and picking up him head, I threw at the head of another Clockwork musketeer, sending him reeling back for me to stab him.

Rena punctured a Clockwork marine's breastplate with two quick strikes, and then finished the job by decapitating him.

Bonnie fired her Scaramanga at the head of a Clockwork musketeer aiming for her, and the Clockwork musketeer reeled back just enough for Emmett to trip him easily and smash his mask mercilessly with the butt of his pistols.

Jack slashed at the legs of another Clockwork marine and as the marine fell; Jack stabbed him in the breastplate and then moved on to a new target.

Old Scratch hummed as he held out his staff with his right and ran the palm of his left over the wood, covering it with purple energy in the shape of a sword.

Ratbeard, the one closest to Old Scratch, kicked the last Clockwork with his peg leg towards the point of Old Scratch's mojo blade. As Old Scratch kicked the Clockwork marine off of his mojo blade, the purple energy disappeared.

"Quick! Let's blow up these munitions and warn El Toro!" Emmett said as he lit a torch with the lantern on the nearby table. Quickly lighting the nearby dynamite, we ran for our lives and slammed the doors as we heard the armory explode.

We then ran back downstairs, reloading our guns as we went, to find the Frogerales waiting for us in a firing line of shotguns, led by Santa Rana's lieutenant wearing gold epaulettes.

"Foolish pirates, you dare move against Santa Rana in his own house? Ha! Santa Rana will punish El Toro for his insolence. We get to punish you!" The Frogerale lieutenant said as he brought his own shotgun up to his eye.

Jack shoved me out of the way as the Frogerales fired their shotguns, leaving him stunned on the floor and Old Scratch waved his staff to summon a skeleton to drag him out of harm's way.

The Frogerales hid behind a barricade made of broken beds and mattresses in a corner of the room where we couldn't shoot them with our guns, but they made one fatal mistake.

Emmett hurled the still-burning torch from the armory onto the barricade, and we ran out of the barracks into the courtyard, where a familiar voice shouted: "You fiend!"

"That sounds like El Toro! He's in trouble – to the palace!" Jack said. He had recovered enough to be able to walk a little, but he would do no good in a fight.

Four Frogerales appeared, and before they could raise the alarm, Bonnie, Emmett, and I quickly aimed our guns, and four Frogerales hit the dusty ground of the courtyard.

"Jack, regroup with the Clutterbucks at the docks. You'll do more good there." I said as I reloaded my pistols. Jack reluctantly obeyed, and we opened the doors to Santa Rana's palace, just wide enough for us to slip inside the entrance hall.

From behind some pillars, we spotted El Toro tied to a chair and surrounded on all sides by the broken bodies of the Clockworks, and we hid behind some pillars.

Frogerales also surrounded him, aiming their shotguns, led by a Frog in a gray suit with a green feather on his tall hat and also wielding a double-barreled shotgun, Santa Rana.

"I knew my new allies would tilt the balance! At last, after years of humiliation, our vendetta ends and I learn your name. Remove his mask!" Santa Rana ordered.

"Indeed, our long dance ends today, Santa Rana – for you! You're right where I want you. There is something you should know. I have not come alone!" El Toro said, stopping Santa Rana in his tracks.

"You're bluffing! No one can save you now. El Toro always works alone." Santa Rana said.

"Not today! Pirates, attack!" El Toro said as he broke free of his ropes and we emerged from our hiding spots behind the pillars, guns blazing.

I spotted a Frogerale near Santa Rana holding El Toro's weapons, and I stunned him so El Toro could recover his foil and whip.

The Frogerales manage to recover and they fired their shotguns at El Toro, but I leapt in front of him and summoned a Valor's Shield, blocking the electrical bursts.

I took out three Frogerales with my pistols and then drew my sword as more Frogerales approached. Not wanting to kill them, I covered my sword with blue energy before attacking.

El Toro managed to yank the shotgun out of Santa Rana's hands into Jack's. "I thought I ordered you to go back to the _Aquila_!"

Jack didn't respond as he aimed the shotgun and pulled the trigger, stunning a Frogerale about to shoot me. "But I guess you'll do more good here."

Bonnie had taken a vantage point on the stairs on one side of the entrance hall, and now she was aiming for Santa Rana.

As she pulled the trigger, Santa Rana leapt up into the air just in time to avoid being stunned and to return fire, stunning Bonnie.

Two Frogerales cornered an injured Jack, and while he managed to take out one, the other stunned him with his shotgun, and he turned around just in time for me to slam my sword into his face.

Old Scratch summoned two more skeletons to drag away Bonnie and Jack back to the _Aquila_, and then he summoned dark globs from the shadows of the pillars to swarm the Frogerales like locusts.

I found myself surrounded by four Frogerales, who fired their shotguns at me. I simply blocked them with a Valor's Shield before attacking the closest one.

I kicked him in the stomach before slamming the flat of my blade into his head, and as one of the other Frogerales tried to club me with the butt of his shotgun, I dropped my sword so I could grab the shotgun and slam the butt of it into his face.

Picking up my sword, I ran towards the remaining two Frogerales, and the closest one tried for a quarterstaff parry, but all he got was a huge dent in the barrel of his shotgun before I kicked him in the stomach so I could knock him out with the flat of my blade.

I picked up a fallen Frogerale's shotgun to stun the last one, and now we surrounded an unarmed Santa Rana, and judging by the red marks on his hands, had his shotgun confiscated by the whip of El Toro.

"Curse you, El Toro! I bid you farewell for now, but mark my words, I shall have my revenge!" Santa Rana shouted as he managed to break through us to flee out the door.

I was about to go after him when El Toro held up a hand to stop me. "History was made today, my friends, and you were part of it! Not the greatest part, of course, but an important part nonetheless."

"Hey!" I protested.

"When the people of Santo Pollo sing songs of this day years from now, they will praise the names of the pirates who helped El Toro topple Santa Rana." El Toro continued. I decided to give up and let him delude himself.

"I would love to talk to you about Captain Blood, but first there is more pressing business. We must spread the good news! Take this letter to Don Rodrigo in his banquet hall. I – er, he – that is to say, _I _am sure _he _will reward you." El Toro said as he handed me a letter.

"Yep, it's definitely him." Rena whispered to me, and I nodded. El Toro shouted as his foil caught on fire and he jumped up, slashing a burning T in the air. As he touched ground again, he threw a smoke bomb onto the ground, and as the smoke dispersed, he was gone.

We went back to the _Aquila_, where we ordered the men to loot Castillo Sapo, as we figured that any remaining Frogerales wouldn't need much.

Now with shotguns in our store rooms and gold lining our pockets, we sailed triumphantly back to Santo Pollo, where there were no Frogerales to be seen.

I and my trusted associates walked up to Don Rodrigo's villa and entered the banquet hall, where Don Rodrigo was waiting for us. "El Toro has sent you with good news. I see it in your eyes! Santa Rana is defeated!"

I handed Don Rodrigo the letter from himself – I mean, El Toro – and after quickly skimming over the contents, he pocketed it inside his jacket. "It warms my heart to know that even tyrants are no match for the strength and cleverness of El Toro. And his pirate allies, of course."

Suddenly, the door to the banquet hall broke down to reveal Santa Rana and a patrol of the Santo Pollo Frogerales, aiming their shotguns at Don Rodrigo.

"Don Rodrigo – I might have known I'd find you at the root of this rebellion. You will pay dearly for your treason!" Santa Rana shouted as the Frogerales fired their shotguns. Don Rodrigo dodged the electrical bursts and ran behind a pillar, and a split second later, El Toro was ready to fight.

Bonnie quickly stunned one Frogerale with her Scaramanga while Jack hurled a fancy chair at Santa Rana, knocking him out. Rena grabbed a nearby china plate and slammed it onto the head of another Frogerale, which shattered into pieces as the Frogerale fell down onto the stone floor.

The skirmish didn't last very long, and soon all of the Frogerales including Santa Rana were tied up and gagged, and being towed away to Santo Pollo's jail.

We stood inside the ruined banquet hall, where Don Rodrigo had changed back into his white suit. "And so my great secret is revealed. Yes, my friends, I am El Toro."

"We knew." We all chorused. Don Rodrigo look honestly shocked that we managed to see through his act, and then decided to complete ignore what we just said. "You suspected nothing, I know. There is no shame in that. At last we can discuss what brought you to Santo Pollo."

"You seek a map, and you think Captain Blood has it in his lair. You come to me to learn where his lair is. I fear I have nothing to tell you."

"You see, I have not always worn the mask of El Toro. Don Rafael de la Vega, my adopted father, trained me and handed the mask down to me years ago."

"He defeated Captain Blood. If anyone knows where Blood would have hidden this map you seek, it would be he."

"Sadly, he is dead. But my mentor had a sidekick, a Bison named Tonka. Talk to Eagle Caller in the Bison village – he may know how to find Tonka."

"Thank you and I'm sorry about your banquet hall." I said as we left. We boarded the Aquila, where Rena was flipping through the pages of Nikolai's atlas. "The Bison village is in Big Sky Country, across the Skyway from Elder Bluff."

I nodded as we sailed west to Cooper's Roost Skyway and then southwest to Big Sky Country, where we dropped anchor at the Bison village docks. As I and my trusted associates walked through the village, we were given curt nods by the Bison.

One of them was kind enough to point us to Eagle Caller, and we found him in front of his tent, where he stood to greet us. "I know your names, sky sailors. You helped my tribe in time of need. Now how can we help you?"


End file.
